Hitherto, an edge connector for connecting a counterpart connector to a side end of a board such as a printed circuit board has been proposed (reference should be made, for example, to Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open (Kokai) No. 05-057788).
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of an edge connector according to the prior art.
In FIG. 4, an edge connector, which is connected to an edge of a board 891 such as a printed circuit board and generally designated by reference numeral 801, includes a housing 811 formed of an insulating material and terminals 861a and 861b formed of metal. The housing 811 has an opening portion 813 that is open to a side opposite to the board 891, and an insertion portion of a counterpart connector (not shown) is inserted into the opening portion 813. In the opening portion 813, first contacting portions 866a and 866b of the terminals 861a and 861b are arranged so as to come into contact with counterpart terminals (not shown) which are arranged in the insertion portion of the counterpart connector.
On a side of the housing 811 opposite to the opening portion 813, second contacting portions 864a and 864b of the terminals 861a and 861b are exposed so as to protrude outward. The board 891 is inserted into a space between the second contacting portions 864a and 864b, and then the second contacting portion 864b on the upper side is pressed towards the board 891 by a pressing member 812 formed of an insulating material. In this case, a bolt 843 and a nut 844 are screw-fastened with each other so as to bias the pressing member 812. In this way, the second contacting portions 864a and 864b are pressed against connection pads (not shown) being exposed to both surfaces of the board 891, whereby secure contact between the second contacting portions 864a and 864b and the connection pads is achieved.
However, in the conventional edge connector, since only the second contacting portion 864b on the upper side is displaced by the pressing member 812, it is difficult to ensure a sufficiently large adjustment range for the gap between the second lower contacting portion 864a and the second upper contacting portion 864b. Nevertheless, the adjustment range for the gap between the second lower contacting portion 864a and the second upper contacting portion 864b may be increased by increasing the amount of displacement of the second upper contacting portion 864b. However, when the amount of displacement of the second upper contacting portion 864b is increased, an excessive pressing force may be applied to the connection pads of the board 891 by the contacting portions 864, or the second upper contacting portion 864b may be plastically deformed. As a result, it is difficult to apply a stable pressing force to the connection pads of the board 891.